ire sat in the back of the taxi staring out the window as the buildings whizzed by. Her mind wasn''t really on the scenery, though. Her thoughts were interrupted as the taxi pulled up in front of Metacortex.


    She took a deep breath, stepped out, thanked the driver, and walked into the sleek lobby of her building. There, as always, was Sandra at her desk, typing away in that efficient rhythm she always had. ire barely looked her way as she made directly for her office, but Sandra leaped up quickly and hurried after her.


    "Ms. Peterson, wait! Don''t-" The door creaked open at ire''s nudge as Sandra''s voice cut off.


    And then she froze. Seated on her couch, looking perfectly at ease, was Mr. Montgomery. For a split second, his presence took her aback, but then in a sh, her poise clicked back into ce. Behind her, Sandra bit her lip, clearly nervous as she whispered a rushed apology. ire shot her a quick re and Sandra promptly scurried away, shutting the door behind her.


    "ire," Mr. Montgomery greeted her with a warm smile as if he hadn''t just ambushed her in her own office.


    "Mr. Montgomery," ire said in greeting as she extended her hand and stepped further into the room. She dropped her bag to the floor before sitting down on the couch across from him. "To what do I owe this unexpected visit?"


    His smile never wavered as he eased back, gettingfortable. "I wanted to check in on you, and see how you''re doing."


    ire raised one eyebrow, her poker face firmly set. "That''s it? I have the feeling there''s more to this than just a wellness check."


    Mr. Montgomery chuckled low in his throat, shaking his head. "You''ve always been sharp, ire. You''re right. There is something else." His expression turned serious. "Is there something you''d like to tell me about?"


    ire shrugged, keeping her voice casual. "Not really. Everything''s running smoothly, as usual."


    Mr. Montgomery gave her a long, estimating look. "ire, I''ve vouch for you to throw Robert away from thispany because you are the sole owner of thispany and made it more profitable than I ever imagined. But that doesn''t mean you can hide things from me or from the other stakeholders."


    Her heart skipped a beat, but outwardly she didn''t bat an eysh. She had a bad feeling about where this might lead. He reached into his suit pocket, pulled out a small stack of photos, and slid them across the table toward her. "Take a look," he said, his voice serious.


    ire picked up the photos; her eyes scanned each. Pictures of delivery trucks outside the building, packages being unloaded-packages meant for the robot project. The less-than-subtle couriers had dropped them off in broad daylight right in front of thepany. "Where did you get this?"


    He shrugged. "I don''t know. It was sent to my house."


    She ced the photos back down, resting her hands on herp as she met Mr. Montgomery''s gaze. "I wasn''t trying to hide anything. I just didn''t want the wrong people finding out before we''re ready to make an official announcement."


    Mr. Montgomery sat back and furrowed his brow. "ire, you may be the CEO, and you may hold the majority of the shares, but we-myself and the other stakeholders equally invested in the sess of thispany. We need to know exactly what''s going on. So, what is the situation, exactly?"


    ire blew out, knowing she had limited options. The project wasn''t something she could keep in the closet forever, not with snoopy couriers and investors sniffing around. "Alright," she said, still trying to keep a poker face, "we are building a robot. From scratch." Mr. Montgomery''s eyes widened like she had just told him she was building a spaceship in her backyard. "What?" he asked, his voice full of disbelief. "You''re what?"


    ire kept her cool, her tone as steady as ever. "I didn''t have much of a choice. No one else would take the job, and the timeline is tight. So, I''m taking matters into my own hands."


    He didn''t let her continue. Before she could exin further, he cut her off, raising his voice slightly. "ire, this isn''t just risky, it''s a death move! You''re ying with fire here!"novelbin


    ire closed her eyes briefly, trying to suppress the surge of frustration rising inside her. She took a deep breath before responding. "You''re quick to judge," she said, her voice calm but firm. "I didn''t want to take this on either, but Harris Hoteis my business partner. The entire theme of this project is technology and a futuristic concept, and they expect me to deliver. I couldn''t just turn my back on that."


    She paused, giving Mr. Montgomery a chance to let her words sink in. He stared at her, his expression still tense.


    ire continued, "I''ve already


    contacted every top robotic


    them were willing to take on the challenge because of the short deadline. They all have their hands full with other projects. But Alex liked the idea, and since I''m the one who suggested having a robot greet guests in the lobby, I can''t just back out now. I refuse to disappoint Harris. I have to maintain my professionalism."


    She leaned back in her chair, watching as Mr. Montgomery struggled to process everything. "Alexander is fine with me handling it, as long as I finish before the deadline and the robot is a sess. l


    That''s why I stepped,


    even


    created a robotics division within Metacortex. I''m not doing this


    blindly."


    Mr. Montgomery fell silent for a moment, his frown deepening as he absorbed all this new information. Finally, he spoke. "Where''s your team?" he asked, his voiceced with skepticism.


    ire didn''t hesitate. "For now, it''s a secret team. I don''t want people to know about it."


    He frowned deeper, clearly not liking her answer. "Why hide it? What''s the point of secrecy?"


    ire straightened in her chair, her eyes hardening. "Last time people knew about one of my projects, Robert stole my ideas and sold them to Venus AMD. That''s why Cortex 2.0 had to be rebuilt from scratch. Do you know how much time and money that cost us? I''m not taking that risk again."


    Mr. Montgomery sighed heavily, rubbing his temples as if trying to massage away a growing headache. "This is a huge gamble, ire. What happens if it doesn''t work? What if the robot doesn''t function the way you expect? Announcing something like this and failing-it''ll ruin Metacortex."


    ire scoffed, her patience wearing thin. "Are you doubting my skills now?"


    Mr. Montgomery held up his hands defensively. "I''m just saying..."


    "I know it''s risky," ire interrupted, her tone sharp. "But I wouldn''t have pulled together the most talented people I know if I didn''t believe this could work. And I wouldn''t announce it until I was sure the robot would meet our standards. I''m not Robert. I don''t cut corners." Her eyes burned with determination; the fire of her ambition visible as she stared him down. Mr. Montgomery sighed again, clearly torn. He didn''t doubt ire''s drive, but the whole thing made him uneasy. "Fine," he finally relented, "but I want to meet your team." ire shook her head immediately. "You can''t. It''s confidential. No one can know about them until the project is ready to be revealed."


    Mr. Montgomery frowned but didn''t push any further. "Alright, but don''t mess this up. If you do, you''ll be no different from Robert. And you know what kind of damage he caused."


    ire rolled her eyes,pletely unfazed by his warning. "Robert''s not even on my level, not by an inch."